1996 Toyota Supra RZ-S 1,250bhp+ Drag Special

The highly anticipated, fourth generation (A80) Supra was finally unveiled at the 1993 Chicago Motor Show after 4 years in development under the guidance of chief engineer Isao Tsuzuki, who had also worked on the first Celica and both generations of MR2. Unlike anything Toyota had produced before, the A80’s proportions and flowing design owed more to the 2000GT of the Sixties than its predecessor. With a long, low bonnet line and high-rise optional rear spoiler it was aerodynamically efficient and clearly aimed at delivering a much higher top speed. Allied to a simplified engine line-up of either naturally aspirated or twin-turbocharged 3.0-litre JZ-series straight-six offering between 220bhp and 326bhp, top-spec turbo versions with Toyota’s first 6-speed gearbox now offered ‘supercar’ performance.

The car presented here started life as a 1996 Toyota Supra RZ-S, factory twin-turbo with a 6-speed gearbox and was one of only 563 examples produced in the desirable factory colour of Royal Sapphire Pearl (8L5). This was not enough for our vendor…..he wanted more!

And more he got…. he is a very determined man and set his sights on turning his Supra in to one of the fastest road-legal cars in Europe – and boy, was he determined. By his own admission, he got ‘carried away’, but the result is truly impressive. A project that may have cost him in excess of £200,000 but there is no disputing that he realised his ambition, the car is a testament to that and his commitment, so behold. Every component and part had to be ‘up to standard’ given the perfection criteria he set himself for this car.

This Supra has 1250bhp+ and is the fastest ½ mile RWD road-legal car in the UK, running a 100-200km/h time of 3.49 seconds which is quicker than most modern hyper cars! The sort of reliable and consistent performance this car has is not achieved easily, and the engineering involved here is top-drawer and specialist.

Fully stripped down to its skeleton, the car had its chassis and paintwork (factory RSP) rotisserie-prepared ready for its epic transformation – this became a full and proper race car quality preparation / build project. From here, the brief got ‘deep’ as everything deemed less that stellar was replaced – the list of new OEM parts became lengthy to say the least! The car’s bespoke build, fabrication and maintenance have been done by specialists ‘SRD Tuning’ of Haywards Heath, one of the best and most respected tuners of Supras in Europe. They know these cars like nobody else and have been ‘fettling’ with this car for years.

The original 2JZGTE engine has been extensively reworked with an array of forged parts and endless hours of R&D. The top-end sports a ported and polished head, built valvetrain, Kelford cams and an incredible Precision 7675 GEN2 DBB Turbo, whilst Syvecs S7 management helps fine tune everything. The engine is mated to a Samsonas RS90 5-speed sequential gearbox with a long drop gear.

The interior likewise has been reworked, with the factory Toyota seats having been thoroughly reworked, leather-trimmed and complete with Alcantara, whilst blue diamond stitch work gives the original interior a huge lift whilst retaining some original Mk4 Supra aura.

The car is surprisingly road-friendly; it fires up on the key, idles and drives smoothly, whilst the Samsonas gearbox is actually a joy to use. The car runs a ‘flex fuel’ system for both pump fuel (Shell V Power) and VPC85 race fuel. This ingenious system automatically detects what’s running through the fuel system, relays it back to the ECU which automatically switches the map. A change of wheels/tyres/suspension spec and the removal of the parachute - you would pretty much have a standard looking Supra. The exterior is sufficiently subtle not to immediately alert you to the Behemoth of a performance car that lurks underneath, and it’s all the more appealing because of it.

Full specification to be added to website soon or upon request beforehand.